Pyongyang (North Korea), Aug. 14 : A senior North Korean diplomat has said that his country''s government is willing to hold talks with Washington.

Kim Yong-il, a vice minister in the North''s Foreign Ministry, is reported to have told reporters: "We always keep the door open to negotiations."

According to Fox News, it was the first such remark from North Korea since former President Bill Clinton’s visit to the country last week to negotiate the release of two American journalists.

North Korea has said the so-called six-party talks on its nuclear program are "over" and "dead," and rejected as "nonsense" the United States'' plan to offer the country new incentives. Pyongyang is keen to have bilateral talks with the United States, a request that Washington is unwilling to accept as of now. (ANI)